WATCH: President Trump honors the heroes of United Flight 93 at PA memorial

On this 17th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, President Trump participated in the memorial service for the victims of United Flight 93, which crashed in central Pennsylvania after passengers and crew thwarted the al Qaeda hijackers’ terror plot. In his powerful address, the president honored those who lost their lives that day and pointed to their heroism as reflecting the American spirit as a whole.

Delivering remarks at the site of the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania, President Trump spoke of the heroes on that plane who “rose up, defied the enemy, took control of their destiny, and changed the course of history.”

The 9/11 Commission Report stated that either the White House or the Capitol Building was a likely target for the hijackers’ suicide mission, which was thwarted by the passengers and crew of Flight 93.

Since 9/11 “nearly 5.5 million young Americans have enlisted in the United States Armed Forces. Nearly 7,000 service members have died facing down the menace of radical Islamic terrorism” – President @realDonaldTrump at Shanksville, PA pic.twitter.com/kpdzOwkjYB

“On September 11, 2001, a band of brave patriots turned the tide on our nation’s enemies and joined the immortal ranks of American heroes,” the president said. “At this memorial, on this sacred earth, in the field beyond this wall, and in the skies above our heads, we remember the moment when America fought back.”

Trump at Shanksville, PA 9/11 memorial: "This memorial is now a message to the world: America will never, ever submit to tyranny." pic.twitter.com/Jbge0QOuox